Gold Coast (Ghana) gains independence | South African History Online South African History Online Home » Gold Coast (Ghana) gains independence Gold Coast (Ghana) gains independence Ghana Flag. Source: Wednesday, 6 March 1957 On 06 March 1957, the Gold Coast (now known as Ghana) gained independence from Britain. Ghana became a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. Ghana was led to independence by Kwame Nkrumah who transformed the country into a republic, with himself as president for life. The country made history in the continent by becoming the first country to gain independence. Before it was colonised, Ghana was made up of a number of independent kingdoms, including Gonja and Dagomba in the north, Ashanti in the interior, and the Fanti states along the coast. In 1482 the first European fort was established by the Portuguese at Elmina.

References: • Biography.com, ‘Kwame Nkrumah’ , [online], Available at [Accessed: 13 February 2012] Ghana Independence 1957 Return to "Decolonization and Independence" Chronology Attempting to replace the slave trade with "legitimate trade" (lawful trade) in British-manufactured goods, Great Britain increasingly intervened in the affairs of Coastal Africa. In 1821, the British government took control of the Gold Coast's possessions from a private African company of merchants. According to Kwame Appiah and Henry Louis, in 1844, the Fanti (the most numerous of the coastal people) rulers signed an agreement with the British that became the legal stepping stone to colonial status for the coastal area (Appiah, 830). Because of the Ashantis (a people who lived in central Ghana) incursions in the coastal region threatened commercial interests, Great Britain fought a series of campaigns against the Ashantis (1822-1900). The British burned the Ashanti capital of Kumasi and forced the Ashanti to accept a humiliating treaty.

Great Britain gradually conquered the peoples to the North of Ashanti between 1896 and 1910 when the Ashanti State lost power and prestige. In 1902, the British annexed Ashanti and Northern territories. Later, Britain declared Ashanti, Northern territories protectorate and the territory of Togoland (it was mandated to the British after World War One) which were known geographically as "The Gold Coast," a crown colony. In the Gold Coast, nationalist opposition began to form during the 1920s when Great Britain introduced indirect rule to traditional authorities. During the1940s, the movement toward independence gained momentum after police opened fire in Accra (capital of Ghana) on a large contingent of former service men who were peacefully carrying a petition to the Governor to seek redress of their grievances. Joseph Danquah and other leading nationalists founded the United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC) in August 1947 and invited Kwame Nkrumah, the first president of Ghana, to lead the group's campaign for representative self-government (but Nkrumah and Danquah were jailed after troops fired on demonstrators and a riot erupted in 1948).

In 1949, the Convention People's Party (CPP), led by Nkrumah organized workers and farmers for the first time in a mass movement for independent and staged strikes. A new constitution was introduced by Nkrumah's government to provide direct election by universal suffrage in 1954. But his government was opposed by the National Liberation Movement (NLM), led by Kofi Busia and based on the Asante region. NLM criticized CPP for its limitation on the powers of chiefs. As a result of this, the NLM pushed for the establishment of a federal state with regional governments, while CPP advocated a unitary state. Another constitution was approved on April 29, 1954, establishing a cabinet comprised of African ministers that were drawn from an all-African legislature chosen by direct election. In the election, CPP won the majority of seat in the new legislative assembly (Republic of Ghana, 4). Prime Minister Nkrumah's Gold Coast government issued a white paper containing proposals for Gold Coast independence in May 1956. The British government agreed to a firm date for independence when a majority of British Togoland residents voted for unification with an independent Gold Coast.

On March 6, 1957, the state of Ghana, named after the medieval West African empire, became an independent country within the Commonwealth of Nations. Bibliography: Appiah, Kwame and Henry Gates, JR, Ed. Africana: The encyclopedia of the African and African-American Experience capitol of ghana(New York; Civitas Books, 1999), pp. 830-833. "Republic of Ghana" In "Background Notes on Countries of the World 2003" < Apr. 2003. The Long Road to Ghana's Independence" < Sept. 1997. facts about ghana south africa Researched and written by: History of Ghana Advertisement History of Ghana Medieval Ghana (4th - 13th Century): The Republic of Ghana is named after the medieval Ghana Empire of West Africa. The actual name of the Empire was Wagadugu. Ghana was the title of the kings who ruled the kingdom. It was controlled by Sundiata in 1240 AD, and absorbed into the larger Mali Empire.

(Mali Empire reached its peak of success under Mansa Musa around 1307.) Geographically, the old Ghana is 500 miles north of the present Ghana, and occupied the area between Rivers Senegal and Niger. Some inhabitants of present Ghana had ancestors linked with the medieval Ghana. This can be traced down to the Mande and Voltaic peoeple of Northern Ghana--Mamprussi, Dagomba and the Gonja. Anecdotal evidence connected the Akans to this great Empire. The evidence lies in names like Danso shared by the Akans of present Ghana and Mandikas of Senegal/Gambia who have strong links with the Empire. There is also the matrilineal connection. ...MORE Gold Coast & European Exploration: Before March 1957 Ghana was called the Gold Coast. The Portuguese who came to Ghana in the 15th Century found so much gold between the rivers Ankobra and the Volta that they named the place Mina - meaning Mine. The Gold Coast was later adopted to by the English colonisers. Similarily, the French, equally impressed by the trinkets worn by the coastal people, named The Ivory Coast, Cote d'Ivoire.

In 1482, the Portuguese built a castle in Elmina. Their aim was to trade in gold, ivory and slaves. In 1481 King John II of Portugal sent Diego d'Azambuja to build this castle. In 1598 the Dutch joined them, and built forts at Komenda and Kormantsil. In 1637 they captured the castle from the Portuguese and that of Axim in 1642 (Fort St Anthony). Other European traders joined in by the mid 18th century. These were the English, Danes and Swedes. The coastline were dotted by forts built by the Dutch, British and the Dane merchants. By the latter part of 19th century the Dutch and the British were the only traders left. And when the Dutch withdrew in 1874, Britain made the Gold Coast a crown colony. By 1901 the Ashanti and the North were made a protectorate... .....MORE Britain and the Gold Coast. The first Britons arrived in the early 19th century as traders in Ghana. But with their close relationship with the coastal people especially the Fantes, the Ashantis became their enemies...

....MORE Economic and Social Development (Before 1957) 1874--Gold Mine in Wassa and Asante. Between 1946-1950 gold export rose from 6 million pounds to 9 million pounds. A Brief History of Ghana Since Independence Date of Independence: March 6,1957 Formerly: the Gold Coast, a British colony Flag: the three colors (red, green, and black)and the black star in the middle are all symbolic of the pan-Africanist movement, which was a key theme in the early history of Ghana's independence About Ghana: Information on Travel Summary of Ghana's history: Much was expected and hoped for from Ghana at independence, but like all new countries during the Cold War, Ghana faced immense challenges. Ghana's first President, Kwame Nkrumah, was ousted nine years after independence, and for the next twenty-five years, Ghana was typically governed by military rulers, with varying economic impacts. The country returned to stable democratic rule in 1992, however, and has built a reputation as a stable, liberal economy.

Government officials carry Prime Minister Kwame Nkrumah on their shoulders after Ghana obtains its independence from Great Britain. Bettman/Getty Images Independence: Pan-Africanist Optimism Ghana’s independence from Britain in 1957 was widely celebrated in the African diaspora. African-Americans, including Martin Luther King Jr and Malcolm X visited Ghana, and many Africans still struggling for their own independence looked on it as a beacon of the future to come. Within Ghana, people believed they would finally benefit from the wealth generated by the country's cocoa farming and gold mining industries. Much was also expected of Kwame Nkrumah, the charismatic first President of Ghana. He was an experienced politician. He had led the Convention People's Party during the push for independence and served as Prime Minister of the colony from 1954 to 1956, as Britain eased toward independence. He was also an ardent pan-Africanist, and helped found the Organization of African Unity . 17 December 1963: Protesters against the government of Kwame Nkrumah outside the offices of the Ghana High Commission in London.

Reg Lancaster/Express/Getty Images Nkrumah's Single Party State Initially, Nkrumah rode a wave of support in Ghana and the world. Ghana, however, faced all the same, daunting challenges of Independence that would soon be felt across Africa. Among these was its economic dependence on the West. Nkrumah tried to free Ghana from this dependence by building the Akosambo Dam on the Volta River, but the project put Ghana deeply in debt and created intense opposition. His own party worried the project would increase Ghana's dependence rather than lesson it, and the project also forced the relocation of some 80,000 people. Additionally, to help pay for the dam, Nkrumah raised taxes, including on cocoa farmers, and this exacerbated tensions between him and the influential farmers. Like many new African states, Ghana also suffered from regional factionalism, and Nkrumah saw the wealthy farmers, who were regionally concentrated, as a threat to social unity. In 1964, faced with growing resentment and afraid of internal opposition, Nkrumah pushed a constitutional amendment that made Ghana a one party state, and himself the life president.

The desolation of lost power, a shattered statue of Kwame Nkrumah, with a forlorn arm pointed skyward in Ghana, 3/2/1966. Express/Archive Photos/Getty Images 1966 Coup: Nkrumah Toppled As opposition grew, people also complained that Nkrumah was spending too much time building networks and connections abroad and too little time paying attention to his own people's needs. ​On 24 February 1966, while Kwame Nkrumah was in China, a group of officers led a coup, overthrowing Nkrumah. (He found refuge in Guinea, where fellow pan-Africanist Ahmed Sékou Touré made him honorary co-President). The military-police National Liberation Council that took over after the coup promised elections, and after a constitution was drafted for the Second Republic, elections were held in 1969. Ghana's Debt Conference in London, 7 July 1970.

From left to right, John Kufuor, Ghanaian Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Peter Kerr, Marquess of Lothian, Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs and chairman of the conference, J. H. Mensah, Ghanaian Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, and James Bottomley, deputy to Lord Lothian. Mike Lawn/Fox Photos/Hulton Archive/Getty Images Troubled Economy: the Second Republic and Acheampong Years (1969-1978) The Progress Party, headed by Kofi Abrefa Busia, won the 1969 elections. Busia became the Prime Minister, and a Chief Justice, Edward Akufo-Addo became the President. Once again people were optimistic and believed the new government would handle Ghana's problems better than Nkrumah's had. Ghana still had high debts, though, and servicing the interest was crippling the country's economy. Cocoa prices were also slumping, and Ghana's share of the market had declined. In an attempt to right the boat, Busia implemented austerity measures and devalued the currency, but these moves were deeply unpopular.

On 13 January 1972, Lieutenant Colonel Ignatius Kutu Acheampong successfully overthrew the government. Acheampong rolled back many of the austerity measures, which benefited many people in the short term, but the economy worsened in the long term. Ghana's economy had negative growth, meaning the gross domestic product declined, throughout the 1970s as it had in the late 1960s. Inflation ran rampant. Between 1976 and 1981, the inflation rate averaged around 50%. In 1981, it was 116%. For most Ghanaian, the basic necessities of life were getting harder and harder to obtain, and minor luxuries were out of reach. Amidst rising discontent, Acheampong and his staff proposed a Union Government, which was to be a government ruled by the military and civilians. The alternative to the Union Government was continued military rule. Perhaps it is unsurprising, then, that the contentious Union Government proposal passed in a 1978 national referendum. In the lead up to the Union Government elections, Acheampong was replaced by Lieutenant General F. W. K.

Affufo and restrictions on political opposition were lessened. Jerry Rawlings Addressing a Crowd, 1981. Bettmann / Getty Images The Rise of Jerry Rawling As the country prepared for elections in 1979, Flight Lieutenant Jerry Rawlings and several other junior officers launched a coup. They weren't successful at first, but another group of officers broke them out of jail. Rawlings made a second, successful coup attempt and overthrew the government. The reason Rawlings and the other officers gave for taking power just weeks before national elections was that the new Union Government would be no more stable or effective than previous governments. They were not stopping the elections themselves, but they did execute several members of the military government, including the former leader, General Acheampong, who had already been unseated by Affufo. They also purged the higher ranks of the military. After the elections, the new president, Dr. Hilla Limann, forced Rawlings and his co-officers into retirement, but when the government was unable to fix the economy and corruption continued, Rawlings launched a second coup.

On December 31, 1981 he, several other officers, and some civilians seized power again. Rawlings remained Ghana's head of state for the next twenty years. A billboard with election posters for President Jerry Rawlings of the National Democratic Congress party on a street in Accra, Ghana ahead of the December 1996 Presidential election. Jonathan C. Katzenellenbogen/Getty Images Jerry Rawling's Era (1981-2001) Rawlings and six other men formed a Provisional National Defense Council (PNDC) with Rawlings as the chair. The "revolution" Rawlings led had Socialist leanings, but it was also a populist movement. The Council set up local Provisional Defense Committees (PDC) throughout the country. These committees were supposed to create democratic processes at the local level. They were tasked with overseeing the work of administrators and ensuring the decentralization of power. In 1984, the PDCs were replaced by Committees for the Defense of the Revolution. When push came to shove, however, Rawlings and the PNDC balked at decentralizing too much power. Rawlings' populist touch and charisma won over crowds, and initially he enjoyed support.

There was opposition from the beginning, though, and just a few months after the PNDC came to power, they executed several members of an alleged plot to overthrow the government.The harsh treatment of dissidents is one of the primary criticisms made of Rawlings, and there was little freedom of the press in Ghana during this time. As Rawlings moved away from his socialist colleagues he gained enormous financial support from Western governments for Ghana. This support was also based on Rawlings' willingness to enact austerity measures, which showed how far the "revolution" had moved from its roots. Eventually, his economic policies brought improvements, and he is credited with having helped save Ghana's economy from collapse. In the late 1980s, the PNDC, facing international and internal pressures, began exploring a shift toward democracy. In 1992, a referendum for returning to democracy passed, and political parties were permitted again in Ghana. In late 1992, elections were held. Rawlings ran for the National Democratic Congress party and won the elections. He was thus the first President of Ghana's Fourth Republic. The opposition had boycotted the elections, though, which undercut the triumph.

The 1996 elections that followed, however, were deemed free and fair, and Rawlings won those as well. The shift to democracy led to further aid from the West and Ghana's economic recovery continued to gain steam in the 8 years of Rawlings' presidential rule. PriceWaterhouseCooper and ENI buildings, Accra, Ghana. Self-published work by jbdodane (originally posted to Flickr as 20130914-DSC_2133 ), CC BY 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons Ghana's Democracy and Economy Today In 2000, the true test of Ghana's fourth republic came. Rawlings was prohibited by term limits from running for President a third time, and it was the opposition party's candidate, John Kufour, who won the Presidential elections. Kufour had run and lost to Rawlings in 1996, and the orderly transition between parties was an important sign of the political stability of Ghana's new republic. Kufour focused much of his presidency on continuing to develop Ghana's economy and international reputation. He was reelected in 2004.

In 2008, John Atta Mills, Rawlings' former Vice-President who had lost to Kufour in the 2000 elections, won the election and became Ghana's next president. He died in office in 2012, and was temporarily replaced by his Vice-President, John Dramani Mahama, who won the subsequent elections called for by the constiution. Amidst the political stability, however, Ghana's economy has stagnated. In 2007, new oil reserves were discovered, adding to Ghana's wealth in resources, but these have not yet brought a boost to Ghana's economy. The oil discovery has also increased Ghana's economic vulnerability, and the 2015 crash in oil prices decreased revenues. Despite Nkrumah's efforts to secure Ghana's energy independence through the Akosambo Dam, electricity remains one of Ghana's hurdles more than fifty years later. Ghana's economic outlook may be mixed,but analysts remain hopeful, pointing to the stability and strength of Ghana's democracy and society. Ghana is a member of ECOWAS, the African Union, the Commonwealth, and the World Trade Organization. Sources CIA, " Ghana ," The World Factbook.

(Accessed 13 March 2016). Library of Congress, " Ghana-Historical Background ," Country Studies, (Accessed 15 March 2016). HISTORY OF GHANA HISTORY OF GHANA Enjoy the Famous Daily The Gold Coast: 15th - 19th century Little is known of the small African kingdoms in the region between the Tano and Volta rivers until the arrival of Europeans in the 15th century. Portuguese navigators, working their way down the west African coast, reach this area in 1471 and build a fortress at Elmina in 1482. But others follow fast. As early as 1492 a French buccaneer, marauding off the coast, deprives a Portuguese ship of its precious cargo. That cargo is gold, and the Gold Coast becomes the European name for this part of Africa. The trade in gold with the Europeans makes possible the development in the early 17th century of Akwamu, the first African state to control an extensive part of the coast.

During the 18th century the dominance of Akwamu is replaced by that of a much more powerful group, the Ashanti, with their capital inland at Kumasi. By this time the British, Dutch and Danes are the main European traders on this part of the coast, and the most valuable commodity for export is not gold but slaves. Trading slaves for muskets, among other western commodities, the Ashanti acquire great local power. Their king, the Asantehene, enthroned on a traditional golden stool, holds sway over the entire central region of modern Ghana. But the Ashanti suffer a series of major blows between 1804 and 1814, when the Danes, British and Dutch each in turn outlaw the slave trade . The resulting tension leads to warfare in the 1820s (with the defeat of a British force in 1824) and again in the 1870s. In 1874 a British army briefly occupies Kumasi. Meanwhile, in the coastal regions, the British are gradually emerging as the main European power.

The Danish fortresses (including the impressive Christiansborg castle in Accra) are bought by the British government in 1850. The last Dutch merchants abandon the coast in 1870. And in 1874 the southern regions are formally proclaimed a British colony, under the name Gold Coast. But it takes another three decades before the Ashanti kingdom, and its dependencies in the north, are finally brought under British control. Colonial period: 1902-1957 In 1901, taking effect from 1 January 1902, Ashanti is declared a British crown colony. The regions further north become at the same time the Protectorate of the Northern Territories of the Gold Coast. The colonial years are relatively prosperous and untroubled. At first little is done to involve the African population in the political processes of the colony. But in the years immediately after World War II events move so fast that the Gold Coast becomes the first colony in sub-Saharan Africa to win its independence. The turning point is the return home in 1947 of Kwame Nkrumah after twelve years of study and radical politics in the USA and Britain.

Nkrumah is invited back to the Gold Coast to become general secretary of the United Gold Coast Convention, an organization campaigning for self-government. The UGCC has won the right (in 1946) for an African majority in the colony's legislative assembly, but the fight is now on for a share in executive power. Nkrumah rapidly extends the movement's popular base, with the result that there are widespread riots in February 1948. The older UGCC leaders are alarmed by this (and by their brief arrest with Nkrumah). A split within the movement leads to Nkrumah founding in June 1949 the Convention People's Party, committed to immediate self-government. From January 1950 Nkrumah organizes a campaign of nonviolent protests and strikes, which lands him back in gaol. But in the colony's first general election, in February 1951, the CPP wins convincingly even in the absence of its leader. Nkrumah is released from prison to join the government. In 1952 he becomes prime minister.

During the years of preparation for independence the neighbouring British Togo votes, in a 1956 plebiscite, to merge with the Gold Coast. It is therefore a slightly extended territory which becomes independent in 1957 under Nkrumah's leadership. A new name of great resonance in African history is adopted - Ghana (although the ancient kingdom of that name was far to the north, in present-day Mali). Independence: from1957 Nkrumah, well aware of his status at the head of the first west African nation to emerge from colonialism, dreams of leading the continent into a Marxist future. This requires a republic, which Ghana becomes in 1960 with Nkrumah as president for life. It also needs only one political party, the CPP. However Nkrumah's authoritarian rule, combined with a collapse in the nation's economy, prompts a coup when the president is away in China in 1966 (he goes into exile in Guinea). It is the first of several such coups in Ghana's short history, but the nation remains true to the hope of democracy. In four decades Ghana establishes as many new republics.

A general election launching the second republic, in 1969, brings to power Kofi Busia, a university professor with a long track record in Ghanaian politics as an opponent of Nkrumah. But he is unable to improve Ghana's economic performance (weakened by low cocoa prices), and he is removed by military officers in 1972. For a few years from 1972 a military regime rules with repressive brutality, under the successive leadership of two generals, Ignatius Acheampong and Frederick Akuffo. But by 1979 a group of younger officers has had enough. Led by Jerry Rawlings, a flight lieutenant in the air force, they take power. Acheampong and Akuffo are executed. Arrangements are put in place for speedy elections. The third republic, in 1979, lasts only two years before Rawlings and his fellow officers intervene again. After his second coup Rawlings takes personal power, ruling through a Provisional National Defence Council which has the specific brief to organize a renewal of the nation's political and economic life down to village level.

Rawlings proves an efficient leader, winning international support for his economic policies, and the 1990s demonstrate that he has popular approval as well. In the prevailing fashion for multiparty democracy, Ghana holds elections in 1992 in preparation for its fourth republic. Rawlings transforms his ruling council into a political party, the National Democratic Congress. The NDC wins nearly all the seats in parliament and Rawlings is elected president. But only 29% of the electorate vote, and most of the opposition parties boycott the election. The 1992 result can hardly be taken as a popular mandate. However elections in 1996, at the end of the four-year term, are altogether more significant. There are other presidential candidates, at least one of them enjoying wide support. Yet Rawlings astonishes observers by winning 57% of the vote, to his nearest rival's 40%. And the NDC retains its absolute majority in parliament. After two terms as an elected president, Rawlings stands down for the presidential election of December 2000. It is won by the opposition leader, John Kufuor.

BBC ON THIS DAY | 6 | 1957: Ghana celebrates independence About This Site | Text Only 1957: Ghana celebrates independence The people of Ghana have been celebrating the end of colonial rule and the dawn of their independence. Most workers have been given the day off - tens of thousands have gathered in the capital, Accra, to greet the independent country's first prime minister, Dr Kwame Nkrumah. The Duchess of Kent has been attending the celebrations. Last night, she opened the Independence Monument, erected near the spot where in 1948 members of the Ghanaian ex-servicemen's union were shot when marching to present a petition to the British Governor. The Gold Coast Legislative Assembly was prorogued at midnight to cheers from the waiting crowd outside. This morning the Legislative Assembly building, now the building of the Ghana parliament was packed with members dressed in their national costumes. The first Governor-General of Ghana, Sir Charles Arden-Clarke has been sworn in. Message from the Queen The Duchess gave a speech, setting out the Ghana Government policy. She also read out a personal message from the Queen to the people of Ghana.

In it she said: "The hopes of many, especially in Africa, hang on your endeavours. It is my earnest and confident belief that my people in Ghana will go forward in freedom and justice." In reply, Dr Nkrumah said: "My government fully realises both the advantages and the responsibilities involved in the achievement of independence. It intends to make full use of these advantages to increase the prosperity of the country." Earlier, the British Prime Minister, Harold Macmillan, made a speech welcoming Ghana's move to independence. "The government and people of Ghana have set their hands to a great task. We are confident whatever may be the difficulties which will face them they will maintain and develop the principles of tolerance and freedom which are inherent in our parliamentary system.

We shall give them all the help we can." Ghanaians campaign for independence from British rule, 1949-1951 | Global Nonviolent Action Database Ghanaians campaign for independence from British rule, 1949-1951 Time Period: Time period notes: Although there was a long preparatory period before 1949, the nonviolent campaign here is considered to start in November 1949 with the first known collective declaration demanding independence. In addition, although the "positive action" was officially ended in early 1950, the nonviolent campaign is here considered to have continued until the elections of 1951 because the Convention People's Party continued to use nonviolent methods until that point November 20, 047. Assemblies of protest or support Notes on Methods: The "positive action" direct action portion of the campaign lasted from December through January (first segment). After that the campaigners focused on gaining support for the elections to be held in February 1951. For that reason, a variety of methods were used for shorter periods in Segment 1, and in the following segments the methods are here kept the same.

See the narrative for more specific details on either portion of the campaign. Segment Length: Black Africans in the British colony of the Gold Coast (later Ghana) Leaders, partners, allies, elites Kwame Nkrumah and other Convention People’s Party (CPP) leaders Partners: Cooperatives, labor unions, farm groups, educational, cultural, women’s and youth organizations. External allies: The United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC) Involvement of social elites: Some African chiefs (such as Nii Kwabena Bonne III), journalists and cultural figures Joining/exiting order of social groups Groups in 1st Segment: unions and other labor groups educational organizations women’s and youth organizations UGCC Opponent, Opponent Responses, and Violence Opponents: Not Known Campaigner violence: In January 1950, ex-servicemen staged a march to Christiansborg; the protesters clashed with police forces sent to stop them and two policemen were killed.

Repressive Violence: In January 1950, the Governor imposed a state of emergency, during which an anti-African pogrom was encouraged (with armed Syrian and European civilians enrolled as auxiliary police and allowed to terrorize and even kill peaceful citizens) and the offices of the Party newspaper and two others were raided by police and closed. The editors of the said publications were jailed, together with many CPP leaders, including Nkrumah. His personal assistant and some of his companions were beaten Success Outcome Success in achieving specific demands/goals: 4 points out of 6 points Survival: 1 point out of 1 points Growth: 3 points out of 3 points Total points: 8 out of 10 points Notes on outcomes: During the general election of 1951, Kwame Nkrumah won and his party, the Convention People’s Party (CPP), won 34 of 38 municipal and rural seats. While Ghana did not become fully independent until 1957 (outside of the 2 year success window; for that reason only 4 points were awarded), this election was the turning point and allowed a self-governing body to lead the country to official independence from Britain.

The infrastructure of the unions and civil groups survived and developed into an active social force. The group of unions and civil groups witnessed an expansion in membership and partnerships. Most fields of activity in the Gold Coast were somehow involved in the campaign. Ghana was the first African country south of the Sahara to gain its independence. The process aimed at African representation had begun as early as the 1920s and under the post-World War II Constitution African parties were allowed to contest elections. But the British tended to favor cooperation with conservative African chiefs and a small intellectual elite, who no longer represented the people as a whole. Kwame Nkrumah, the leader of a Convention People’s Party, which began in 1949, encouraged the nationalist movement demanding immediate independence and led a campaign of nonviolent ‘positive action’ influenced by Gandhi and India’s struggle for independence. After Nkrumah had been studying abroad for several years, J. B. Danquah, president of the Gold Coast’s first opposition political party, the United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC), invited Nkrumah to become the secretary of the Convention in 1947. Nkrumah arrived in December 1947 and began work immediately.

In February 1948, a national crisis occurred. A group of unarmed African ex-servicemen set out on a march from Accra to the suburban residence of the British governor to present him with a petition of grievances. Ordered to stop, they refused and the police forces opened fire, killing two and wounding five of the participants. When news of the incident spread, rioting broke out in several towns. European and Asian stores were looted by the angry mob and the rioters forced open the Central Prison and set free its inmates. The riots spread from Accra to other cities, such as Nsawam, Koforidua, Akuse and Kumasi, and lasted for days, resulting in 29 deaths and 237 other casualties by the time they were over. Prior to the riots there had been a month-long peaceful boycott of all European and Syrian merchandise organized by Nii Kwabena Bonne III, a Ga Chief, who was trying to force the foreign shopkeepers to reduce the exorbitant prices they were charging Africans for essential commodities. The boycott ended the very day the riots broke out.

None of these events was the work of the UGCC, which had been engaged in a struggle for constitutional reform. Nkrumah, however, used the crisis in favor of the independence campaign. On February 29, 1948, in the midst of the rioting, he cabled to the Colonial Office in London saying that people were demanding self-government and that a commission to supervise the transition towards independence should be sent to the Gold Coast. He sent copies of this message to the international press (The New York Time, the Associated Negro Press, the Novoe Vremya, etc.). Hoping to put a stop to the riots, the Governor exiled Danquah, Nkrumah, and other UGCC leaders on March 13th. The governor also set up an all-African committee to draft a new constitution. This body issued a report, adopted with a few modifications by the Colonial Office as a basis for gradual, guided self-governance and for the first general election in Gold Coast history. Dissatisfied with this solution, Nkrumah pressed for a more radical alternative and precipitated a split with the UGCC.

With several others, Nkrumah formed the Convention People’s Party (CPP) in June 1949. The party was headed by Nkrumah with Kojo Botsio as its secretary and K. A. Gbedemah as its vice-chairman. Nkrumah and nine other CPP members immediately embarked on a countrywide tour to present the CPP program to the people. They gained support quickly and on November 20th, 1949, the CPP called a constituent assembly such as the one Nkrumah had earlier demanded of the Colonial Office. The assembly was attended by more than 80 000 representatives of over fifty groups, including cooperatives, labor unions, farm groups, educational, cultural, women’s and youth organizations. The assembly demanded that the “people of the Gold Coast be granted immediate self-government, that is, dominion status” and drew up a memorandum outlining the structure of government, both central and local, which they wanted embodied in the new constitutions. Nkrumah also asked for a round-table conference with the British officials, but they refused to meet with him or other CPP leaders, or to recognize the assembly.

Nkrumah gave the British three weeks to respond and when they did not, he informed the Governor on December 15th, 1949 that the CPP would embark upon a campaign of “Positive Action”, based on Gandhi’s philosophy of nonviolent noncooperation, and would continue with it until the British Government conceded the right of the Gold Coast people to convene their Constituent Assembly. The same day, through the CPP newspapers, Nkrumah instructed the nation to prepare, reminding the people that strikes and other activities which were to be part of the campaign must remain strictly non-violent, and that actions such as looting, burning and destruction of property, rioting or other forms of violence would undermine the campaign and its goals. Nkrumah distinguished two stages in the campaign: first, the period of “positive action”, a combination of nonviolent methods with effective and disciplined political action, and second, the stage of “tactical action”, a sort of contest of wits. CPP organizers first prepared people around the country for the first stage of civil resistance, the positive action phase. The government responded by testing the strength of the organization and its tactics.

Three CPP journalists and the secretary of the Ex-Servicemen Union (partner organization) were imprisoned on charges of sedition, but the bail was quickly raised and paid by CPP volunteers. Hoping to forestall the threatened positive action campaign, government officials agreed to a conference with CPP leaders, which began on January 5, 1950. The British asked Nkrumah to postpone positive action while they studied the proposals put forward by the CPP and announced on the radio that an agreement had been reached. The CPP reacted by breaking off the negotiations and on January 8, 1950, called a mass meeting, telling the participants that a nation-wide boycott of British goods and a general strike should begin at midnight that day. In his speech at that meeting, Nkrumah presented the main weapons of positive action as being legitimate political agitation, press and educational campaigns, and, as a last resort, the constitutional application of strikes, boycotts and noncooperation based on the principle of absolute nonviolence. The strike began at the set time.

The same day, Nkrumah travelled to other key cities – Cape Coast, Sekondi and Tarkwa – formally declaring the onset of positive action in each of them, while CPP organizers spread the word to other areas. The strike paralyzed the country. Nobody worked, transportation was brought to a standstill, however, essential services like water, electricity and medical care continued to work, as the nationalist leaders had agreed. Positive action continued for 21 days, despite threats of dismissal of workers from jobs, numerous warnings and curfews, and the full evocation of a state of emergency (called by the Governor). Seeking to create division among the participants and put an end to the strike, the government broadcasted radio “updates” of the situation, telling people in each city that strikers in other regions had already gone back to work. To counteract the government manipulation, Nkrumah called another mass meeting on January 11th, where he spoke for two hours to a large crowd.

At 7 PM the same day, the Governor imposed a strict curfew and a series of emergency measures (the state of emergency would last from January 11th to March 6, 1950): public meetings were forbidden, all Party letters were opened and censored, an anti-African pogrom was encouraged (with armed Syrian and European civilians enrolled as auxiliary police and allowed to terrorize and even kill peaceful citizens), the Party newspaper and two others were banned and their offices were raided by police and closed, the editors of the opposition publications were jailed, together with many CPP leaders, including Nkrumah. None resisted the arrests. Nkrumah had instructed the country to keep calm and make “no demonstrations of any kind”. Although incidental violence on the part of the British occurred (for instance, Nkrumah’s personal assistant and some of his companions were beaten), overall, they acted with restraint. One serious incident marred the campaign: on January 17th, ex-servicemen staged a march to Christiansborg. The marchers clashed with police forces sent to stop them and two policemen were killed.

Nkrumah did not stop the campaign and, at his trial, disclaimed responsibility for this “unauthorized occurrence”. He and his colleague were convicted for “inciting others to take part in illegal activities” and received prison sentences from six months to two years. Positive action was over, but the solidarity it had demonstrated was channeled to electoral activity. When elections for the town council took place in Accra, Cape Coast and Kumasi, the CPP won majorities in all three cities. In April 1950, Kimla Agbeli Gbedemah, one of the jailed CPP leaders, was released from prison. He immediately took charge of the Party as chairman and organized it for the forthcoming general elections (in the process creating a strong network of party branches across the southern half of the colony), receiving directives smuggled out of prison from the other leaders. Rallies, picnics, dances and skits were organized in all major cities, party flags, slogans and salutes embodied the CPP and its goals, and loudspeaker vans painted in the Party’s colors (red, white and green) were used to disseminate electoral messages.

On a more emotional level, the Party was masterful in adapting prayers and biblical phrases to popularize its message among people for whom Christianity had deep appeal. The elections were held in February 1951, less than a year after the positive action campaign, and the CPP swept the country, winning 35 out of 38 seats. The British then released the CPP leaders who had remained in prison; they became the center of public ceremonies organized by the Party to maintain the cult of martyrdom that had developed around its imprisoned leadership and, as “prison graduates”, were awarded diplomas and celebrated almost as heroes. They promptly occupied their government posts. The governmental structure contained all the defects that they had protested against, but under Nkrumah’s leadership, they were worked out as the Gold Coast moved rapidly towards full self-government and independence, which was proclaimed on March 6, 1957, with Nkrumah as prime-minister of the new nation of Ghana. The nonviolent “positive action” campaign was not the sole factor in bringing this result, but it provided strong impetus to hasten the day, and powerful leverage for political action both through the election and in the parliamentary maneuvering that followed.

Though not used again, its potential gave substance to CPP moves within the government. Research Notes Ghana demands independence from Britain | South African History Online South African History Online Home » Ghana demands independence from Britain Ghana demands independence from Britain Kwame Nkrumah Friday, 3 August 1956 In 1821, the British Government took control of the British trading forts. In 1844, Fanti chiefs on the Gold Coast (as Ghana was then known) signed an agreement with the British that led to the colonial status for the coastal area. In 1902, the British succeeded in establishing firm control over the Ashanti region and making the northern territories a protectorate. In May 1956, Kwame Nkrumah's Gold Coast government issued a white paper with proposals for Gold Coast's independence. On 3 August 1956, the Gold Coast Assembly adopted Kwame Nkrumah's resolution demanding independence from Britain. The British Government stated it would agree to a firm date for independence if a reasonable majority for such a step were obtained in the Gold Coast Legislative Assembly after a general election.

The 1956 election returned the Convention People's Party (CPP) to power with 71 of the 104 seats in the Legislative Assembly. Ghana became an independent state on March 6, 1957, when Britain relinquished its control over the Gold Coast and Ashanti, the Northern Territories Protectorate, and British Togoland. After a long period of colonial rule, the newly elected Assembly of Ghana, passed a motion directing the government to demand independence from Britain. As the opposition party was not part of the debate, the motion was passed with unanimous vote. The motion was also accepted by the British Government as representing the majority of the Assembly. In 1957 Ghana became the first African country to gain independence. References: Ghana - History , from Mongaybay.com,[online], Available at: [Accessed: 31 July 2013] Ghana country profile - BBC News BBC News Read more about sharing. Close share panel Ghana is considered one of the more stable countries in West Africa since its transition to multi-party democracy in 1992.

Formerly known as the Gold Coast, Ghana gained independence from Britain in 1957, becoming the first sub-Saharan nation to break free from colonial rule. Gold, cocoa and more recently oil form the cornerstone of Ghana's economy and helped fuel an economic boom. Until recently Ghana was hailed as a model for African growth but since 2013, its economy has endured a growing public deficit, high inflation, and a weakening currency, resulting in its seeking an IMF bailout. Read more country profiles - Profiles by BBC Monitoring FACTS Area 238,533 sq km (92,098 sq miles) Major languages English, African languages including Akan, Ewe Major religions Christianity, indigenous beliefs, Islam Life expectancy 64 years (men), 66 years (women) Currency Cedi President: Nana Akufo-Addo Image copyright Getty Images Nana Akufo-Addo won the presidential election in December 2016, tapping into an electorate fed up with a sputtering economy and ready for change.

The erudite 72-year-old human rights lawyer won 53.8 % of the votes, according to the country's election agency, and incumbent John Mahama conceded defeat after a hotly contested race that was seen as a test of the country's democracy in a region plagued by dictators and coups. MEDIA Image copyright Getty Images Image caption The Apostle Safo Technology Research Centre aims to transform Ghana's manufacturing sector Ghana enjoys a high degree of media freedom and the private press and broadcasters operate without significant restrictions. Radio is Ghana's most popular medium, although it is being challenged by increased access to TV. Some key dates in Ghana's history: 1482 - Portuguese settlers arrive and begin trading in gold, ivory and timber. 1500s - Slave trade: Slavery overtakes gold as the main export in the region. 1600s - Dutch, English, Danish, and Swedish settlers arrive; slave trade becomes highly organised. 1642 - The Portuguese relinquish their territory to the Dutch and leave the Gold Coast. 1807 - British dominance: British ban on slave trade from the Gold Coast becomes effective. 1874 - The Gold Coast is officially proclaimed a British crown colony.

1957 - Independence: Ghana becomes first black African colony to declare independence. 1964-1992 - Military rule: Succession of destabilising coups, Ghana is predominantly a one-party state. 1992 - New constitution, multi-party system is restored. 2010 - Economic woes: Offshore oil production starts, fuelling Africa's fast-growing economy. Public deficit spirals.

Question: What was the name of Ghana before it gained independence?
Answer: Gold Coast